New York City To Get Public EV Charging Station Pilot
Following the recent approval of INT. 1124 by the New York City Council, the unofficial capital of the northeastern US will soon become home to a new pilot program for the buildout of public electric vehicle charging stations.
The idea behind the pilot program is to install electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in a wide variety of popular, publicly accessible locations — such as gas stations, municipal parking lots, parks, etc. — and thereby support broader consumer adoption.
Image of public EV charging stations via ChargeHub
The local embrace of EVs is targeted as a key pathway to reducing carbon emissions and local air pollution. There are currently more than 2 million internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles in New York City.
The bill was sponsored by Councilman Costa Constantinides (D-Astoria), the chair of the council’s Environmental Protection Committee.
Constantinides had this to say on the subject: “With an incoming presidential administration that has pledged to undo our nation’s efforts to combat climate change, cities and local governments must now lead the way on protecting our environment. New York has already been a worldwide role model in sustainability and we must continue to keep this work a top priority. INT. 1124 will help us reach our goal of reducing carbon emissions by encouraging sustainable habits. A pilot program for electric-vehicle charging stations will encourage more New Yorkers to use electric cars.”
The Queens Tribune provides more: “The program is a 2-year pilot that will place at least two electronic charging stations in each of the five boroughs. … The New York City Department of Transportation is projected to post the location of the charging stations. An advisory committee will be established to report on the program’s cost, the rate of utilization of each charging station, recommendations for expansion, the feasibility of on-street charging and more.”
Overall, that sounds like a good plan. Here’s to hoping that there are substantially more than 2 EV charging stations installed in each borough, though. The idea of possible on-street parking is particularly interesting, a popular model in some European cities (like Amsterdam) but relatively uncommon in the US.
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